Hampshire Officer Shot, Killed

June 02, 2000

A police officer on his first shift since suffering a minor stroke two weeks ago was shot and killed near Hampshire, a small northern Illinois town, officials said Friday.

The body of Sgt. Gregory Sears, 50, was discovered by a passing motorist near his squad car at an industrial park near the junction of U.S. Route 20 and Interstate 90, about 50 miles northwest of Chicago, Hampshire police Chief Thomas Atchison said.

He said a witness reported hearing three shots around 9 p.m. Thursday and saw a dark-colored sport utility vehicle or minivan fleeing the scene with its lights off.

Sears, who was wearing body armor and whose gun was still in its holster, was shot in the head an unknown number of times, Atchison said.

Police do not know why Sears was in the area because he was not on a call and radio logs do not show he called in a traffic stop, Atchison said.

He said there are no suspects or solid leads, but investigators will re-interview people who were working in the industrial complex at the time.

Sears, a seven-year member of the department, was a newlywed and back on the job for the first time after suffering a stroke.